Luminaire with Programmable Light Distribution

ABSTRACT

A method of setting luminance levels of a solid-state light sources of a luminaire with programmable light distribution is provided. The method includes obtaining a file describing a desired light beam distribution, converting the desired light beam distribution into luminance levels for the solid-state light sources, and applying the luminance levels to the solid-state light sources to cause the luminaire to output the desired light beam distribution.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This patent application is a continuation of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 15/447,199, entitled “Luminaire with Programmable LightDistribution,” filed Mar. 2, 2017, which is hereby incorporated byreference in its entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

This present application relates to solid-state lighting fixtures andmore particularly to light-emitting diode (LED) based luminaires.

BACKGROUND

Programmable luminaires, such as those utilizing multiple solid-statelight sources, allow a user to manually program luminance levels ofindividual solid-state light sources and groups of solid-state lightsources to adjust the direction and intensity of light. However, incases which multiple such luminaires are to be programmed, manuallyprogramming the luminaires may be relatively time-consuming.

SUMMARY

All examples and features mentioned below may be combined in anytechnically possible way.

Various implementations described herein include a method of settingluminance levels of solid-state light sources of a luminaire withprogrammable light distribution. The method may include obtaining a filedescribing a desired light beam distribution, converting the desiredlight beam distribution into luminance levels for the solid-state lightsources, and applying the luminance levels to the solid-state lightsources to cause the luminaire to output the desired light beamdistribution.

In some implementations, obtaining the file describing the desired lightbeam distribution may include obtaining an IES file or a EULUMDAT filedescribing the desired light beam distribution. In some implementations,the IES file or the EULUMDAT file may be obtained from another luminairewith programmable light distribution. In some implementations, the IESfile or the EULUMDAT file may be obtained from a database of IES filesor EULUMDAT files. In some implementations, the method may furtherinclude obtaining an output of a lighting design program, wherein theoutput including the file, and identifying the luminaire from the outputof the lighting design program.

In some implementations, the method may further include performing afeasibility check to determine if the desired light beam distribution isfeasible to implement on the solid-state light sources of the luminaire.In some implementations, the feasibility check may be intensityindependent. In such implementations, performing the feasibility checkmay include normalizing data of the file describing the desired lightbeam distribution to a maximum intensity of the distribution, and usinggeometric aspects of the desired light beam distribution to determine ifthe desired light beam distribution is feasible to implement on thesolid-state light sources of the luminaire. In such implementations,converting the desired light beam distribution into the luminance levelsfor the solid-state light sources may include modulating an intensity ofthe solid-state light sources to emulate the geometric aspects of thedesired light beam distribution. In some implementations, thefeasibility check may be intensity dependent. In such implementations,performing the feasibility check may include obtaining a calibrationfile for the luminaire with all solid-state light sources at fullintensity and comparing the calibration file to a maximum intensity ofthe desired light beam distribution.

In some implementations, converting the desired light beam distributioninto the luminance levels for the solid-state light sources may includedetermining whether the desired light beam distribution is rotationallysymmetric. In some implementations, in response to determining that thedesired light beam distribution is rotationally symmetric, convertingthe desired light beam distribution into the luminance levels for thesolid-state light sources may include calculating luminance levels forone arc of the solid-state light sources and applying the calculatedluminance levels to other arcs of the solid-state light sources. In someimplementations, in response to determining that the desired light beamdistribution is not rotationally symmetric, converting the desired lightbeam distribution into the luminance levels for the solid-state lightsources may include processing spatial variations to achieve the desiredlight beam distribution.

In some implementations, converting the desired light beam distributioninto the luminance levels for the solid-state light sources may includeobtaining a light beam configuration profile file specifying individualcontributions of the solid-state light sources, and determiningintensity constants to be applied to the solid-state light sources fromthe light beam configuration profile file. In some implementations, thefile may include a surface plot of luminance levels at a target surface.

Further implementations described herein include a non-transitorytangible computer readable storage medium having stored thereon acomputer program for implementing a method of setting luminance levelsof solid-state light sources of a luminaire with programmable lightdistribution, the computer program including instructions which, whenexecuted by a computer, cause the computer to perform a processincluding obtaining a file describing a desired light beam distribution,converting the desired light beam distribution into luminance levels forthe solid-state light sources, and applying the luminance levels to thesolid-state light sources to cause the luminaire to output the desiredlight beam distribution.

In some implementations, the instructions which, when executed by thecomputer, cause the computer to perform the process further includingimplementing a user interface through which a user of the computerinteracts with the computer program, the user interface enabling theuser to select the file describing the desired light beam distributionfrom a set of files describing previously defined light beamdistributions.

Further implementations described herein include a lighting system. Thelighting system includes one or more luminaires, in which a firstluminaire in the one or more luminaries includes a plurality ofsolid-state light sources, and a computer communicatively coupled to theone or more luminaires, the computer including a processor that isconfigured to obtain a file describing a desired light beamdistribution, convert the desired light beam distribution into luminancelevels for the plurality of solid-state light sources of the firstluminaire, and apply the luminance levels to the plurality ofsolid-state light sources to cause the first luminaire to output thedesired light beam distribution.

In some implementations, the processor may be further configured toreceive a user input to change the luminance levels for one or more ofthe plurality of solid state light sources of the first luminaire, andapply the changed luminance levels to the one or more solid-state lightsources of the first luminaire.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a screen view of an example user interface of a lightingdesign program.

FIG. 2 is a top perspective view of an example luminaire withprogrammable light distribution.

FIGS. 3-4 are cross-sectional views of the example luminaire of FIG. 2.

FIGS. 5A, 5B, and 5C are screen views of an example user interface of aluminaire control program to control the programmable light distributionoutput from an example luminaire such as the luminaire of FIG. 2.

FIG. 6 is a flow chart of an example process of programming a luminairewith programmable light distribution configured in accordance with someembodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 7 is a screen view of an example user interface of a luminairecontrol program to control individual luminaires and sets of luminairessuch as the luminaire of FIG. 2 according to some embodiments of thepresent disclosure.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram of an example luminaire with programmablelight distribution according to some embodiments of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram of an example luminaire control applicationaccording to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

These and other features of the present embodiments will be understoodbetter by reading the following detailed description, taken togetherwith the figures herein described. The accompanying drawings are notintended to be drawn to scale. In the drawings, each identical or nearlyidentical component that is illustrated in various figures may berepresented by a like numeral. For purposes of clarity, not everycomponent may be labeled in every drawing.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

This disclosure is based, at least in part, on the realization that itwould be advantageous to provide a method of setting luminance levels ofa solid-state light sources of a luminaire with programmable lightdistribution.

In some embodiments, a method of setting luminance levels of asolid-state light sources of a luminaire with programmable lightdistribution is provided. The method includes obtaining a filedescribing a desired light beam distribution, converting the desiredlight beam distribution into luminance levels for the solid-state lightsources, and applying the luminance levels to the solid-state lightsources to cause the luminaire to output the desired light beamdistribution. According to an implementation, a light specification filethat specifies a lighting profile, such as a file output by a lightingdesign program, is uploaded to a luminaire control application to enablethe luminaire control application to cause the programmable luminaire toautomatically set intensity levels of a plurality of solid-state lightsources to achieve the lighting profile within the room.

Numerous configurations and variations will be apparent in light of thisdisclosure.

General Overview

Lighting design involves specifying multiple levels of lighting. Forexample, multiple layers of lighting may be specified, includingambient, task, focal, and decorative lighting levels. The ambientlighting layer is characterized by uniform lighting conditions. Itestablishes mood and its principal function is to provide generalillumination. The task lighting layer involves additional lighting,usually having a specific light distribution, which enables light to beprovided in a specific area where a task or particular function isperformed. The focal or accent lighting layer involves specifyinglighting that is meant to create contrast and have dramatic effects. Forexample, focal lighting may be used to illuminate paintings or statuesin a museum in a low ambient light situation. The decorative layer is alayer of lighting which is whimsical and creates sparkle. This istypically achieved through the use of decorative luminaires.

FIG. 1 shows an example user interface 100 of an example lighting designprogram. Lighting designers use computer simulation programs to simulatelighting in a room, building, or other environment. Lighting designprograms are commercially available, such as from DIALux and Relux. Theexample user interface of FIG. 1 does not reflect one of thecommercially available lighting design programs, but is an exampleillustration to provide context for how example lighting design programsoperate.

In the example lighting design program user interface shown in FIG. 1,the example user interface 100 includes a model display area 110, a filerepository area 120, and a tool ribbon 130. A graphical model 140 of anarea for which lighting is to be designed, such as a room or a floor ofa building, is selected from the file repository area 120 and loadedinto the model area 110. Alternatively the graphical model 140 may bedrawn directly in model display area 110 using tools 150 from the toolribbon 130. The graphical model 140 may be a two dimensional plan viewor a three dimensional model. Lighting characteristics are then selectedfor the graphical model 140 using tools 150 from the tool ribbon 130.For example, the lighting designer may use the user interface 100 of thelighting design program to select and locate particular lightingfixtures relative to the graphical model 140. As the light fixtures areselected and added to the graphical model 140, the light produced by thelight fixtures is simulated on the graphical model 140 in the modeldisplay area 110. This allows the lighting designer to simulate how theuse of particular lighting fixtures affects light within the area forwhich lighting is to be designed. The output of the lighting designprogram may be a list of light fixtures and locations where the lightfixtures should be installed to enable the particular lightingcharacteristics to be achieved.

A luminaire is a complete lighting unit, together with all the partsdesigned to distribute the light, to position the light, and to positionand protect the bulbs or solid state lights that produce the light, andto connect the light sources to a power supply. The light output by aluminaire may be characterized by measuring the output light using aphoto-goniometer. This measurement quantifies the intensity of thelight, in candela (cd) or candela per lumen (cd/lm) as a function ofangle. The output of this measurement is typically an IlluminationEngineering Society of North America (IES) file or an EULUMDAT file,which is the European equivalent to the IES file specified in IESNALM-63.

Since different luminaires have different lighting characteristics, e.g.both spectral and beam characteristics, the lighting design programincludes IES files of multiple commercially available luminaires toenable the lighting design program to accurately simulate light outputby those luminaires. In use, when a lighting designer selects aparticular luminaire for use with a particular graphical model, thelighting design program will use the IES file to accurately model thelight output from the selected luminaire on the graphical model 140 sothat the lighting designer may see the effect of the light on thegraphical model 140 of the area for which lighting is to be designed.

As particular luminaires are selected, the lighting design program usesthe IES files to depict how light output from particular selectedluminaires appears if deployed in the space, so that the lightingdesigner may determine the effect of deploying the selected luminairesin the modeled area for which lighting is to be designed. The IES fileis used by specifiers to model fixtures within a space using thelighting design software, and with that the lighting design professionalmay determine what luminaires may be used to provide the desiredluminance levels and/or conditions. Although there are otherconsiderations that may affect the overall selection of fixtures, suchas Correlated Color Temperature (CCT), Color Rendering Index (CRI), andlighting efficiency, beam pattern plays a particularly important rolegiven that it determines fixture spacing and determines illuminationpatterns within a space.

Once the lighting design has been completed, the lighting design programmay output a list of luminaires and their locations so that the selectedmodeled luminaires may be purchased and installed in the physical space.

Conventional solid-state lighting fixtures often had fixed light beamdistributions that were static and determined by their opticalconstruction. As such, these fixtures do not allow a user to adjust thelight distribution without physically modifying, moving, or replacingthe fixture.

There are instances where the particular lighting selected for a givenspace may need to change periodically. For example in a retail store,the light characteristics for a given space may change when the mannerin which the goods are displayed changes.

Unlike conventional lighting fixtures, a luminaire with anelectronically adjustable light beam distribution enables the lightoutput from the luminaire to be adjusted. One example of a luminairehaving an electronically adjustable light beam distribution is disclosedin U.S. Pat. No. 9,332,619, entitled “Solid-state luminaire with modularlight sources and electronically adjustable light beam distribution,”the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference in itsentirety.

In particular, as shown in FIGS. 2-4, in one implementation a luminaire200 having an electronically adjustable light beam distribution includesa plurality of solid-state light sources 210 disposed on a housing 220.The housing 220, in one implementation, is hemi-spherical although otherhousings 220 with other shapes may be used as well. FIGS. 3 and 4 showcross-sectional views of the example luminaire 200 having anelectronically adjustable light beam distribution. As shown in FIG. 3,the plurality of solid-state light sources 210 point toward an aperture230 to allow light produced by the solid-state light sources 210 to exitthe luminaire 200. By selectively individually controlling the intensityof each of the individual solid-state light sources 210, it is possibleto electronically adjust the distribution of the light beam output bythe luminaire 200. For example, FIG. 4 shows a particular electronicallyadjustable light beam distribution for the luminaire 200 in which twosolid-state light sources 210 are turned on to shine light in particulardirections through the aperture 230 while the other solid-state lightsources 210 are turned off.

FIGS. 5A-5C show a user interface 500 of an example luminaire controlprogram to control the programmable light distribution output from anexample luminaire, such as the luminaire of FIG. 2. When a luminairesuch as the luminaire 200 shown in FIGS. 2-4 is installed, the spatialdistribution of light output by the luminaire 200 is controlled byinteracting with a user interface 500 of a luminaire controlapplication. In some embodiments, the luminaire control application mayrun on a mobile computer such as a laptop computer, tablet computer orsmartphone. In other embodiments the luminaire control application maybe hosted on a server and accessed over a network such as the Internet.

User interfaces for a luminaire control application are not limited tothe user interface shown in FIGS. 5A, 5B, and 5C. The luminaire controlapplication user interface of FIGS. 5A-5C is merely one example of auser interface for a luminaire control application. In the example userinterface 500 shown in FIGS. 5A-5C, the user interface 500 includes abeam representation region 510 containing points 520 representing eachof the individually controllable solid-state light sources 210 in theluminaire 200. The layout of the points 520 correspond to the layout ofindividually controllable solid-state light sources 210 in thecorresponding luminaire. In the example shown in FIGS. 5A-5C the beamrepresentation region 510 shows sixty-one points via which the lightintensity of sixty-one individual solid-state light sources 210 of aluminaire 200 may be adjusted. When the luminaire 200 to be controlledhas a different number of individually controllable solid-state lightsources 210, the beam representation region 510 would likewise include acorresponding different number of points 520.

The user interface 500, in a first mode as shown in FIG. 5A, allows theuser to select an individual point 520 in the beam representation region510, for example by tapping on the point 520 representing the selectedsolid-state light source 210. The user interface 500, in this mode,allows the user to use one or more controls 540 in control panel 530 toset the intensity and optionally color of the light emitted by thesolid-state light source 210 represented by the selected point 520. Inthis mode, the user may set the intensity of each individual solid-statelight source 210, for example, to set the intensity of the selectedsolid-state light sources to accent particular aspects of theenvironment. The control panel 530 may include slide bars (illustratedin FIGS. 5A-5C) or other forms of user inputs to change the intensity,color, and other attributes of the selected solid-state light sources.

In a second mode, for example as shown in FIG. 5B, the user interface500 allows the user to select a group of adjacent points 520 in the beamrepresentation region 510, for example by using a multi-finger gestureto draw a highlighted region 550 encompassing a number of points 520representing a set of selected solid-state light sources. By pinchingand expanding highlighted region 540 in the beam representation region510, the user may decrease or increase the dimensions of the highlightedregion to select fewer or a larger number of points 520. The user maythen use controls 540 in the control panel 530 to set the intensity ofthe set of selected solid-state light source, for example to form a beamof light directed toward a particular region of the environment.

In a third mode, which may be used with either the first mode or thesecond mode, the luminaire includes a camera and a view of the camera isdisplayed within the beam representation region 510. An example of thismode is shown in FIG. 5C. Points 520 representing the solid-state lightsources 210 of the luminaire 200 are superimposed over the camera viewof the room, to make it easier for the user to correlate actions on thesolid-state light sources 210 to lighting within the area captured bythe camera.

Use of the user interface 500 thus allows the user to control individualsolid-state light sources 210 or groups of solid-state light sources 210in the luminaire 200 to create desired lighting effects. However, in thesituation in which a known lighting design is desired, for example in anenvironment where a lighting designer has created a lighting design thatis to be implemented within a room or in multiple rooms of a building,programming the solid-state light sources 210 of each luminaire 200 maytake a considerable amount of time. Likewise re-programming theluminaires 200 for different external ambient lighting conditions may bedifficult.

According to various implementations, a previously designed desiredlighting condition may be generated and uploaded into a memory of asolid state luminaire. In some implementations the previously designeddesired lighting conditions are designed using a lighting design programsuch as the program discussed in connection with FIG. 1. In otherimplementations, the previously designed desired lighting conditions areIES files defining an output of another light source. An output filefrom the lighting design program, such as a set of IES files from a setof luminaires selected to implement the desired lighting conditions isoutputted and uploaded into the memory of the solid state luminaire. Aprocessor on the luminaire 200 or the luminaire control application usesthe uploaded target IES file to determine luminance levels for thesolid-state light sources 210 of the luminaire 200 to control operationof the solid-state light sources 210 to achieve the desired light beamdistribution.

In one implementation, a user generates an IES file either from ameasured luminaire or from a simulation. The user uploads the file intabulated form to a web-based interface, which stores the IES file/beamdistribution in a unique or public library. The system may generate agraphical representation of the IES file. The user accesses the filesthrough the tablet interface. The user assigns the file to a single ormultiple luminaires 200 having electronically adjustable light beamdistributions. The luminaire 200 having the electronically adjustablelight beam distribution uses the information in the file to calculatethe luminance levels for the solid-state light sources 210 under itscontrol to achieve the luminance levels specified by the file/beamdistribution automatically without requiring the user to individuallyprogram lights or sets of lights.

FIG. 6 is a flow chart showing an example method of programming aluminaire 200 having an electronically adjustable light beamdistribution according to some implementations. In some implementations,the method may be performed by a luminaire control application (e.g.,luminaire control application 900 in FIG. 9) or by a control system ofluminaire 200 (e.g., control system 800 in FIG. 8).

As shown in FIG. 6, a file describing a desired light beam distribution(e.g., file 810 in FIG. 8) is obtained in block 600. In someimplementations, the file 810 is an IES file. In some implementationsthe file 810 is a EULUMDAT file. In some implementations the file 810 isa surface plot describing a luminance level at spatial coordinates, forexample on surfaces within a room in which the luminaire 200 isinstalled. The file 810 may describe a desired light beam distributionto be implemented by adjusting the intensity levels of the solid-statelight sources 210 of the luminaire 200. In some implementations the file810 is obtained from a lighting design program. In some implementationsthe file 810 is obtained from a database of possible light beamdistributions. In some implementations the file 810 is an IES orEULUMDAT file describing the output light beam distribution of aluminaire with a fixed light beam.

It may not be feasible for the luminaire 200 to recreate the lightingdistribution as described in the file 810. According to someimplementations, a feasibility check is performed to determine if it isfeasible to implement the beam distribution described by the file inblock 610. In one implementation, the feasibility check is intensityindependent. An intensity independent feasibility check is implementedby processing the data of the file 810 independent of the intensity ofthe data. In one implementation the intensity independent feasibilitycheck is implemented by normalizing the data of the file 810 to themaximum intensity of the distribution, and only geometric aspects aretaken into consideration in determining the feasibility of thedistribution. The intensity of the solid state light sources 210 is thendetermined based on the maximum intensity of the solid state lightsources 210, and the geometric aspects of the IES light beam profile arethen used to modulate the intensity of the solid-state light sources210.

In another implementation, an intensity dependent feasibility check isused to determine if it is feasible for the luminaire 200 to implementthe beam distribution described by the file 810. In this implementation,a calibration file for the luminaire 200 with all solid-state lightsources 210 at full power is obtained. In some implementations thecalibration file is an IES or EULUMDAT file. A comparison is then madeusing this calibration file to determine whether the maximum intensityof the desired beam distribution profile described by file 810 ispossible with the luminaire 200.

In some implementations, to determine if a distribution is feasible forthe luminaire 200 to implement, a goodness-of-fit may be calculated. Inone implementation, a luminaire 200 light beam configuration profilefile is obtained (e.g., light beam configuration profile file 920 inFIG. 9). In some implementations, the light beam configuration profilefile 920 for the luminaire 200 is determined once for the type ofluminaire 200 by measuring the light generated by each solid-state lightsource 210 independently, for example using a goniometer. In someimplementations a first of the solid-state light sources 210 ofluminaire 200 is set at full intensity and all other solid-state lightsources 210 of luminaire 200 are set at zero intensity. A goniometer isthen used to measure the output light beam distribution produced by theluminaire with the first of the solid-state light sources 210 turned on,to create an IES file for the luminaire 200 with the first of thesolid-state light sources turned on. This process is iterated byindividually activating each of the other solid-state light sources 210and using the goniometer to measure the output light beam distributionproduced by the luminaire when that solid-state light source isactivated.

Any possible distribution the luminaire 200 may produce may becalculated by summing the contributions of N individual solid-statelight source 210 s (IN) with a scaling factor. For example, the luminousintensity in candela of a given distribution (I_(FINAL)) is the sum ofeach individual contribution IN by the individual solid-state lightsources 210. When the individual solid-state light sources 210 are notturned on at full intensity, the contribution of a given individualsolid-state light source 210 will be multiplied by an intensity constantCN. If a solid-state light source 210 is off, the intensity constant CNfor that solid-state light source 210 will be zero. If the solid-statelight source 210 is at full intensity the intensity constant CN for thatsolid-state light source 210 will be one. If the solid-state lightsource 210 is dimmed the constant CN for that solid-state light sourcewill be between zero and one. Hence, the luminous intensity of theluminaire 200 having M individual solid-state light sources 210 may becalculated as:

I _(FINAL) =C ₁ *I ₁ +C ₂ *I ₂ +C ₃ *I ₃ + . . . C _(M) *I_(M)  Equation (1)

The far-field candela distribution of any light may be represented as asurface with an intensity value at every theta and phi coordinate. IESfiles typically contain slices showing intensity data at many rotationalvalues, which may thus be used to create a full surface. In oneimplementation, the luminaire 200 may emulate a user-supplied lightdistribution by finding a best fit surface to this data usingcontributions from each of the individual solid-state light sources 210,by adjusting the intensity constants CN for each of the solid-statelight sources 210 to approximate the intensity distribution specified bythe file 810 uploaded in block 600.

If the desired light beam distribution is not feasible (e.g., adetermination of “No” at block 610), the system may alert the user thatthe distribution is not feasible due to geometrical or intensitylimitations in block 620. Other actions may be taken as well, such as tosuggest an alternate light beam distribution that approximates thedesired light beam distribution in block 625 and request the user toconfirm whether the luminaire 200 should be configured to implement thealternate light beam distribution. In one implementation, the system maydetermine an alternate light beam distribution that includes changes tothe absolute intensity or geometry of the desired light beamdistribution to obtain a comparable distribution or lighting level. Inanother implementation the system may compute a best approximation tothe desired light beam distribution.

If the desired light beam distribution is feasible (e.g., adetermination of “Yes” at block 610), the system may calculate luminancelevels for each of the solid-state light sources 210. In oneimplementation, the system calculates luminance levels for thesolid-state light sources 210 by first determining whether thedistribution is rotationally symmetric or asymmetric in block 630. Ifthe desired light beam distribution is symmetric, the system maycalculate luminance levels for the solid-state light sources 210 bycalculating intensity levels for solid-state light sources 210 in onearc and then rotating the intensity levels 360 degrees to obtainintensity levels for all arcs of the solid-state light sources 210 inthe luminaire 200 in block 640. If the desired light beam distributionis asymmetric, the system processes the spatial variations to achievethe desired light beam distribution in block 650.

After calculating the luminance levels for each solid-state light source210 in the luminaire 200, the system may apply the calculated luminancelevels to the luminaire in block 660. For example, the luminaire controlapplication may instruct the luminaire to set the luminance levels ofthe solid-state light sources on the luminaire according to thecalculated luminance levels. The luminaire 200 may proportionally powerthe solid-state light sources 210 to match the received luminance levelsin block 670. For example, a control system on the luminaire may receivethe calculated luminance levels from the luminaire control applicationand apply the appropriate power to each of the solid-state lightsources.

There may be a number of different approaches to control the luminancelevel of the individual solid-state light sources 210. In a firstimplementation, the individual solid-state light sources 210 are setbased on the known maximum intensity of the luminaire 200 with allsolid-state light sources 210 at maximum intensity. Since the maximumintensity at a given power is known, the luminance level in thisimplementation is controlled as a percentage of that intensity or as aPulse Width Modulation (PWM) level, for example.

In another implementation, a surface plot of the illumination at thetarget is obtained from the file 810 describing the desired light beamdistribution, and the system finds the optimal combination ofsolid-state light sources 210, and illumination intensities for theoptimal combination of solid-state light sources 210 that enables theluminaire 200 to match the illuminance level of the surface plot.

In some instances, multiple luminaires 200 may be deployed in a givenarea. In this instance, the system may determine illuminance levels ofsolid-state light sources 210 of multiple luminaires 200 thatcooperatively match the illuminance levels specified by the fileobtained in block 610. In some implementations the system createsoptimal distributions for a given file that are collectively implementedby the multiple luminaires 200.

FIG. 7 shows a user interface 700 of an example luminaire controlapplication running on a mobile computer such as a tablet computer orsmartphone. An example functional block diagram of a luminaire controlapplication is shown in FIG. 9. The user interface of FIG. 7, in oneimplementation, enables a user to control multiple luminaires 200 byassociating desired beam profile files with the luminaires 200.

As shown in FIG. 7, the user interface 700 includes a roomrepresentation region 710. The room representation region optionallyshows a two dimensional spatial map of the layout of the room in whichthe luminaires 200 are to be deployed, and contains luminaire icons 720showing the approximate location of each luminaire 200 within the room.

A light distribution library menu 730 is provided on the user interface.The light distribution library menu 730 contains a library of lightdistribution profiles 740 that the user may select and assign toindividual luminaires 720. In some implementations the library containsfiles 810 describing light beam distributions. In some implementationsthe library contains links to an external database containing files 810describing light beam distributions. In some implementations, the usermay assign a light distribution profile 740 to a particular luminaire200 represented by a luminaire icon 720 on the room representationregion 710 by dragging the light distribution profile 740 from the lightdistribution library menu 730 onto the selected luminaire icon 720. Byselecting a desired light distribution profile 740 and dragging anddropping the light distribution profile 740 onto the luminaire icon 720,the luminaire control application will cause the solid-state lightsources 210 of the luminaire 200 to be programmed to implement thedesired light distribution profile.

Optionally, once the desired light distribution profile 740 is selectedand applied to a luminaire icon 720, the desired light distributionprofile 740 may be adjusted such as by rotating the desired lightdistribution profile 740. In one implementation, clicking on the desiredlight distribution profile 740 for a luminaire icon 720 will cause auser interface 500 such as described above in connection with FIGS.5A-5C to be shown to enable the user to further interact with points 520to control individual solid-state light sources 210 of the selectedluminaire 200. In some implementations a single light distributionprofile 740 may be applied to a given luminaire icon 720. In someimplementations multiple light distribution profiles 740 may be appliedto a given luminaire icon and summed by the luminaire to enable theluminaire to output light defined by the combination of the two or moreselected light distribution profiles 740.

In one implementation, files 810 describing desired light beamdistributions are implemented as IES files describing light output byconventional light sources. These files 810 may be stored in a publiclyavailable or private database of IES files. In one implementation, thefiles 810, such as IES or EULUMDAT files, are stored on-line in adatabase accessible via the Internet. When a lighting model is createdusing a lighting design program, the settings of light sources selectedto implement the lighting model may be stored as an IES or EULUMDAT filestored in the database.

The user interface of the luminaire control application accesses files810 with photometric and light beam pattern distribution information andcreates light distribution profiles specifying intensity levels forsolid-state light sources 210 of luminaires 200. In someimplementations, each light distribution profile 740 is associated withan icon in the light distribution library menu 730 of the user interface700. A user may then drag and drop the light distribution profiles 740onto particular luminaire icons 720 or otherwise associate the lightdistribution profiles 740 with luminaire icons 720 to program theluminaires 200 to cause the luminaires to implement the desired lightdistribution profiles 740.

In another implementation, when a user uses the user interface 500 toset the intensity levels for points 520 representing solid state lightsources 210 of a luminaire 200, the intensity levels may be stored andan IES file of the luminaire's current state may be created and stored.As noted above, since the luminaire light beam configuration profilefile 920 was created by detecting the light beam profile of eachindividual solid-state light source 210, the output IES file of aluminaire 200 may be calculated using the current individual intensitylevels of the solid-state light sources 210 and the luminaire light beamconfiguration profile file 920 as: I_(FINAL)=C₁*I₁+C₂*I₂+C₃*I₃+ . . .C_(M)*I_(M). In this calculation, the I values are taken from theluminaire light beam configuration profile file 920 and the C values arebased on the current scaling or dimming value applied to the respectivesolid-state light sources 210. An IES file defining the current state ofthe luminaire 200 may therefore be created, stored, and re-used via userinterface 700 to allow the state of one luminaire 200 to be replicatedon other luminaires 200.

In an implementation in which the luminaire 200 includes solid-statelight sources 210 that are capable of producing multiple colors, anIES-like file that includes color information at every coordinate may becreated. Alternatively, multiple IES files (one for each color) may becreated and used to determine the optimal luminance levels for thesolid-state light sources 210 as well as the color of the solid-statelight sources 210.

In an implementation, if a user is not able to achieve a desired lightdistribution, the user interface of the luminaire control applicationmay suggest additional luminaires or other types of lighting that may beadded to the room to enable the target desired light distribution to beachieved.

FIG. 8 shows an example control system 800 of luminaire 200. As shown inFIG. 8, the example control system 800 includes a processor 820 thataccesses applications 830 stored in memory 840. Files 810 describingdesired light beam distributions may also be stored in memory 840. Thememory 840 may be any form of non-transitory tangible computer-readablestorage medium. In operation, an application executing on the controlsystem 800 processes the file 810 to determine power levels to beapplied to solid-state light sources 210 associated with power sockets850. Optionally driver 860 may be used to set power levels at powersockets 850. A communication module 870 enables control system 800 tocommunicate with a luminaire control application 900 such as theluminaire control application described in connection with FIG. 9.Components of control system 800 may be interconnected by bus 880.Control system 800 may include additional components as well, which havenot been shown in FIG. 8 to avoid obfuscation of the variousimplementations.

FIG. 9 shows an example luminaire control application 900. The luminairecontrol application 900 may be located on a computing device thatcommunicates with and controls one or more luminaires 200 (e.g., asmartphone, tablet, laptop, desktop, server). As shown in FIG. 9, theexample luminaire control application 900 has a user interface 905defining the luminaire control application user interface 500. Theluminaire control application 900 includes a set of files, or has accessto a set of files 910, describing previously defined light beamdistributions. The luminaire control application also includes aluminaire light beam configuration profile file 920 containing IES dataabout the luminaire 200 with each individual solid-state light sourceindividually turned on as described above.

The luminaire control application 900, in some implementations, alsoincludes a luminaire light beam profile processor 930. The luminairelight beam profile processor 930 takes a selected file 810 describing aselected previously defined light beam distribution, i.e. IES data, andcomputes luminance levels to be applied to the solid-state light sources210 of luminaire 200. In some implementations, the luminaire controlapplication 900 outputs the computed luminance levels to the luminaire200 via communication module 940. The communication 940 may enable wiredor wireless communication between the luminaire control application 900and one or more luminaires 200 and/or control systems 800 of luminaires200. In other implementations the luminaire control application 900outputs the file describing the desired light beam distribution 810 tothe control system 800 of the luminaire 200, and the control system 800of the luminaire 200 computes the luminance levels to be applied to thesolid-state light sources 210.

In some implementations, the luminaire control application includes afeasibility checker 950 configured to perform the feasibility checksdescribed above in connection with FIG. 6.

In some implementations, the luminaire control application includes amultiple luminaire light processor 960. In some implementations, themultiple luminaire light processor 960 uses a representation of a modellayout 970 in which the multiple luminaires are installed, to determineoverlap between light beams output by adjacent luminaires 200 tocollectively adjust the amount of light applied at a surface of themodel by luminaires 200.

The methods and systems described herein are not limited to a particularhardware or software configuration, and may find applicability in manycomputing or processing environments. The methods and systems may beimplemented in hardware or software, or a combination of hardware andsoftware. The methods and systems may be implemented in one or morecomputer programs, where a computer program may be understood to includeone or more processor executable instructions. The computer program(s)may execute on one or more programmable processors, and may be stored onone or more non-transitory tangible computer-readable storage mediumreadable by the processor (including volatile and non-volatile memoryand/or storage elements), one or more input devices, and/or one or moreoutput devices. The processor thus may access one or more input devicesto obtain input data, and may access one or more output devices tocommunicate output data. The input and/or output devices may include oneor more of the following: Random Access Memory (RAM), Read Only Memory(ROM), cache, optical or magnetic disk, Redundant Array of IndependentDisks (RAID), floppy drive, CD, DVD, internal hard drive, external harddrive, memory stick, or other storage device capable of being accessedby a processor as provided herein, where such aforementioned examplesare not exhaustive, and are for illustration and not limitation.

The computer program(s) may be implemented using one or more high levelprocedural or object-oriented programming languages to communicate witha computer system; however, the program(s) may be implemented inassembly or machine language, if desired. The language may be compiledor interpreted.

As provided herein, the processor(s) may thus be embedded in one or moredevices that may be operated independently or together in a networkedenvironment, where the network may include, for example, a Local AreaNetwork (LAN), wide area network (WAN), and/or may include an intranetand/or the Internet and/or another network. The network(s) may be wiredor wireless or a combination thereof and may use one or morecommunications protocols to facilitate communications between thedifferent processors. The processors may be configured for distributedprocessing and may utilize, in some embodiments, a client-server modelas needed. Accordingly, the methods and systems may utilize multipleprocessors and/or processor devices, and the processor instructions maybe divided amongst such single- or multiple-processor/devices.

The device(s) or computer systems that integrate with the processor(s)may include, for example, a personal computer(s), workstation(s),personal digital assistant(s) (PDA(s)), handheld device(s) such ascellular telephone(s) or smart cellphone(s), laptop(s), tablet orhandheld computer(s), or another device(s) capable of being integratedwith a processor(s) that may operate as provided herein. Accordingly,the devices provided herein are not exhaustive and are provided forillustration and not limitation.

References to “a microprocessor” and “a processor”, or “themicroprocessor” and “the processor,” may be understood to include one ormore microprocessors that may communicate in a stand-alone and/or adistributed environment(s), and may thus be configured to communicatevia wired or wireless communications with other processors, where suchone or more processor may be configured to operate on one or moreprocessor-controlled devices that may be similar or different devices.Use of such “microprocessor” or “processor” terminology may thus also beunderstood to include a central processing unit, an arithmetic logicunit, an application-specific integrated circuit (IC), and/or a taskengine, with such examples provided for illustration and not limitation.

Throughout the entirety of the present disclosure, use of the articles“a” and/or “an” and/or “the” to modify a noun may be understood to beused for convenience and to include one, or more than one, of themodified noun, unless otherwise specifically stated. The terms“comprising”, “including” and “having” are intended to be inclusive andmean that there may be additional elements other than the listedelements.

Elements, components, modules, and/or parts thereof that are describedand/or otherwise portrayed through the figures to communicate with, beassociated with, and/or be based on, something else, may be understoodto so communicate, be associated with, and or be based on in a directand/or indirect manner, unless otherwise stipulated herein.

Implementations of the systems and methods described above comprisecomputer components and computer-implemented processes that will beapparent to those skilled in the art. Furthermore, it should beunderstood by one of skill in the art that the computer-executableinstructions may be executed on a variety of processors such as, forexample, microprocessors, digital signal processors, gate arrays, etc.In addition, the instructions may be implemented in a high-levelprocedural and/or object-oriented programming language, and/or inassembly/machine language. For ease of exposition, not every element ofthe systems and methods described above is described herein as part of acomputer system, but those skilled in the art will recognize that eachstep or element may have a corresponding computer system or softwarecomponent. Such computer system and/or software components are thereforeenabled by describing their corresponding steps or elements (that is,their functionality), and are within the scope of the disclosure.

The following reference numerals are used in the drawings:

-   100 user interface of lighting design program-   110 model display area-   120 file repository area-   130 tool ribbon-   140 graphical model-   200 luminaire-   210 solid-state light source-   220 housing-   230 aperture-   500 user interface of lighting control application-   510 beam representation region-   520 points-   530 control panel-   540 control-   550 highlighted region-   700 user interface of luminaire control application-   710 room representation region-   720 luminaire icon-   730 light distribution library menu-   740 light distribution profiles-   800 control system of luminaire 200-   810 file(s) describing desired light beam distribution-   820 processor-   830 applications-   840 memory-   850 power sockets-   860 driver-   870 communication module-   880 bus-   900 luminaire control application-   905 user interface-   910 files describing previously defined light beam distributions-   920 luminaire light beam configuration profile file-   930 luminaire light beam profile processor-   940 communication module-   950 feasibility checker-   960 multiple luminaire interaction light processor-   970 model layout

Although the methods and systems have been described relative tospecific embodiments thereof, they are not so limited. Manymodifications and variations may become apparent in light of the aboveteachings. Many additional changes in the details, materials, andarrangement of parts, herein described and illustrated, may be made bythose skilled in the art. A number of implementations have beendescribed. Nevertheless, it will be understood that additionalmodifications may be made without departing from the scope of theinventive concepts described herein, and, accordingly, otherimplementations are within the scope of the following claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of setting luminance levels ofsolid-state light sources of a luminaire with programmable lightdistribution, the method comprising: obtaining a file describing adesired light beam distribution; performing a feasibility check todetermine if the desired light beam distribution is feasible toimplement on the solid-state light sources of the luminaire; convertingthe desired light beam distribution into luminance levels for thesolid-state light sources when the desired light beam distribution isfeasible to implement on the solid-state light sources of the luminaire;and applying the luminance levels to the solid-state light sources tocause the luminaire to output the desired light beam distribution. 2.The method of claim 1, wherein obtaining the file describing the desiredlight beam distribution comprises obtaining an IES file or a EULUMDATfile describing the desired light beam distribution.
 3. The method ofclaim 2, wherein the IES file or the EULUMDAT file is obtained fromanother luminaire with programmable light distribution.
 4. The method ofclaim 2, wherein the IES file or the EULUMDAT file is obtained from adatabase of IES files or EULUMDAT files.
 5. The method of claim 1,further comprising: obtaining an output of a lighting design program,wherein the output comprises the file; and identifying the luminairefrom the output of the lighting design program.
 6. The method of claim1, wherein the feasibility check is intensity independent.
 7. The methodof claim 6, wherein performing the feasibility check comprises:normalizing data of the file describing the desired light beamdistribution to a maximum intensity of the distribution, and usinggeometric aspects of the desired light beam distribution to determine ifthe desired light beam distribution is feasible to implement on thesolid-state light sources of the luminaire.
 8. The method of claim 7,wherein converting the desired light beam distribution into theluminance levels for the solid-state light sources comprises modulatingan intensity of the solid-state light sources to emulate the geometricaspects of the desired light beam distribution.
 9. The method of claim1, wherein the feasibility check is intensity dependent.
 10. The methodof claim 9, wherein performing the feasibility check comprises:obtaining a calibration file for the luminaire with all solid-statelight sources at full intensity and comparing the calibration file to amaximum intensity of the desired light beam distribution.
 11. The methodof claim 1, wherein converting the desired light beam distribution intothe luminance levels for the solid-state light sources comprises:determining whether the desired light beam distribution is rotationallysymmetric.
 12. The method of claim 11, wherein in response todetermining that the desired light beam distribution is rotationallysymmetric, converting the desired light beam distribution into theluminance levels for the solid-state light sources comprises:calculating luminance levels for one arc of the solid-state lightsources and applying the calculated luminance levels to other arcs ofthe solid-state light sources.
 13. The method of claim 11, wherein inresponse to determining that the desired light beam distribution is notrotationally symmetric, converting the desired light beam distributioninto the luminance levels for the solid-state light sources comprises:processing spatial variations to achieve the desired light beamdistribution.
 14. The method of claim 1, wherein converting the desiredlight beam distribution into the luminance levels for the solid-statelight sources comprises: obtaining a light beam configuration profilefile specifying individual contributions of the solid-state lightsources; and determining intensity constants to be applied to thesolid-state light sources from the light beam configuration profilefile.
 15. The method of claim 1, wherein the file comprises a surfaceplot of luminance levels at a target surface.
 16. A non-transitorytangible computer readable storage medium having stored thereon acomputer program for implementing a method of setting luminance levelsof solid-state light sources of a luminaire with programmable lightdistribution, the computer program comprising instructions which, whenexecuted by a computer, cause the computer to perform a processcomprising: obtaining a file describing a desired light beamdistribution; performing a feasibility check to determine if the desiredlight beam distribution is feasible to implement on the solid-statelight sources of the luminaire; converting the desired light beamdistribution into luminance levels for the solid-state light sourceswhen the desired light beam distribution is feasible to implement on thesolid-state light sources of the luminaire; and applying the luminancelevels to the solid-state light sources to cause the luminaire to outputthe desired light beam distribution when the desired light beamdistribution is feasible to implement on the solid-state light sourcesof the luminaire.
 17. The non-transitory tangible computer readablestorage medium of claim 16, further comprising instructions which, whenexecuted by the computer, cause the computer to perform the processfurther comprising: implementing a user interface through which a userof the computer interacts with the computer program, the user interfaceenabling the user to select the file describing the desired light beamdistribution from a set of files describing previously defined lightbeam distributions.
 18. A lighting system, comprising: one or moreluminaires, wherein a first luminaire in the one or more luminariescomprises a plurality of solid-state light sources; and a computercommunicatively coupled to the one or more luminaires, the computercomprising a processor that is configured to: obtain a file describing adesired light beam distribution; perform a feasibility check todetermine if the desired light beam distribution is feasible toimplement on the solid-state light sources of the luminaire; convert thedesired light beam distribution into luminance levels for the pluralityof solid-state light sources of the first luminaire when the desiredlight beam distribution is feasible to implement on the solid-statelight sources of the luminaire; and apply the luminance levels to theplurality of solid-state light sources to cause the first luminaire tooutput the desired light beam distribution.
 19. The lighting system ofclaim 18, wherein the processor is further configured to: receive a userinput to change the luminance levels for one or more of the plurality ofsolid state light sources of the first luminaire; and apply the changedluminance levels to the one or more solid-state light sources of thefirst luminaire.